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Urban Decay Book of Shadows Vol. IV: A Bit of Glam to Brighten a Bloated Day

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I was up before the chickens this morning, thanks to 18 pounds of tabby cat making biscuits on my butt.

Don’t get me wrong — I usually like my early morning kitty massages (I find them kind of charming), but at 4 in the morning, a good two hours before my alarm was set to go off, today’s wasn’t exactly what I’d call a good time. 🙂

This is probably TMI, but I’m going there because we’re friends: I’ve been feeling decidedly un-glamourous this week, and not even makeup has been cheering me up.

Hard to believe, but it’s true.

I’ve just been so beyond bloated, fussy and tired that I felt like Thelma and Louise there for a minute this morning when I realized that my stretchy clothes weren’t fitting the way they did/should.

I almost lost it. It was intervention time — that, or I was headed off a cliff.

And then it beckoned me, like a beauty beacon of light from above — Urban Decay’s Book of Shadows Vol. IV — and I answered the call.

urban decay book of shadows iv swatches iphone 2

YES. 🙂
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How Much Is Too Much for a Tube of Mascara?

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I was surfing the web the other day, allegedly to start my holiday shopping because I waited until the last minute last year and aged about five years in two days, but I digress…

My holiday shopping idea came to a quick end when I landed on the Saks site and spotted a distracting new mascara from Chantecaille called Faux Cils Longest Lash.

Chantecaille Faux Cils Longest Lash Mascara

My stubby fringe and I have been locked in beauty battle for more than two decades, so any time I spy mascara marketing that lauds a product’s ability to lengthen lashes, I drool like Pavlov’s dog. 🙂

Of course this time I didn’t even make it through the product’s description before choking on the price.

$70.

Yup, $70.

Granted, it’s supposed to be more than mere mascara. According to Chantecaille, it’s also a peptide infused lash growth serum.

“Chantecaille’s Longest Lash Mascara fuses the newest lash-growth peptide technology with the original, sought-after Faux Cils formula. Lashes get a boost with Chantecaille’s unique SymPeptide 17, stimulating keratin genes and encouraging the strength and length of your natural lashes — without irritation or discoloration.”

Interesting bell/whistle, but 70 bucks? Really? The most I’ve ever thrown down for tube of mascara was $30 for Yves Saint Laurent Faux Cils, which I like, but not as much as I’d expect to for the price.

I could see myself maybe going as high as $40, maybe $45, depending on how well a mascara delivers, but one would have to make my drag-a-licious dreams come true to justify that kind of price.

What’s the most you’d pay for a tube of mascara?

What's the most you'd pay for a tube of mascara?

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Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,

Karen

P.S. ‘tsup?

Fanciful Fall: The Dolce & Gabbana Sweet Temptations Collection Would Like You to Save Room for Dessert

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dolce gabbana <img loading=

Cocoa cravings got ya down? Why not save the See’s for later, and let the Dolce & Gabbana Sweet Temptations collection feed your need (and you won’t even have to undo the top button of your skinny jeans)?

Delectable neutrals in cocoas and creams (YUM!) headline the dessert cart in the 11-piece release for eyes, lips, cheeks, face and nails, but they aren’t the only treats on the menu this fall. Chef D&G was kind enough to add sprinkles of orange, berry, pink, green and gold.

Resistance is futile for me when it comes to chocolate cravings and Dolce & Gabbana’s smooth textures, but it’s utterly ridiculous when you combine them with delicious names like Cocoa, Almond, Cinnamon and Praline.

Here’s a taste of what’s in store with a few swatches and pics. If anything causes your sweet tooth to throb, please let me know. 🙂

dolce gabbana sweet temptations collection fall 2011 cocoa quad
Smooth Eye Colour Quad in Cocoa 115

dolce gabbana sweet temptations collection fall 2011 cinnamon duo
Smooth Eye Colour Duo in Cinnamon 80
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Fanciful Fall: Marrakesh By Way of Bohemia with the Bobbi Brown Marrakesh Chic Collection for Fall 2011

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bobbi brown marrakesh chic

Grab your passport, Boho babe, because Bobbi Brown is taking us to Marrakesh!

Available now on counters and very soon online, the new 17-piece Marrakesh Chic collection’s shades of pink, plum, taupe, beige, gray and peach suggest it’ll be a casual, comfy trip, so pack accordingly (might I suggest a flowy floral top, wide-leg flares, feather earrings, chunky heels and that turquoise ring I know you have? 🙂 ).

The limited edition release invokes exotic street markets, broken-in jeans and buttery soft leather saddlebags handed down from an adventurous great grandmother. I think it also has some of that whole “lady of the canyon” vibe that’s been a big trend in fashion for a while.

While it’s a complete launch with pieces for eyes, lips and cheeks, the focus appears to be on the eight new limited edition Rich Color Eyeshadows ($30 each) it contains.

Right away, I noticed something peculiar about the pans. They’re circular, and not the usual (for Bobbi) squares.

bobbi brown marrakesh chic swatches

And that’s not the only break from Bobbi’s norm. The powder shadows themselves feel softer than usual to me, almost like creams, and the pigments and finishes look unlike anything I’ve seen from Bobbi before.

Picture the complexity of a MAC duochrome with the soft sheen of an eyeshadow from Becca.

According to the Bobbi Brown makeup artist I spoke with at the counter the other day (hi, Charmaine!), Bobbi used a completely different shadow formula this time around, one supposedly longer-wearing than usual that doesn’t crease, but it can be tricky to apply without the right tools.

bobbi brown marrakesh chic swatches
Rich Color Eyeshadows from the left: 1. Royale; 2. Sand Dune; 3. Desert Lily and 4. Rich Slate

bobbi brown marrakesh chic swatches
Rich Color Eyeshadows from the left: 5. Pink Silk; 6. Coffee Bean; 7. Wine and 8. Rich Kashmir
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Living Proof Straight Spray Keeps My Waves on the Straight and Narrow

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Ever since I asked my stylist to hack a few inches off my wavy hair earlier this month, I’ve been wearing it straight pretty much daily (it’s a Lloyd Christmas thing). I started looking for hair straightening products sans silicones, scoping beauty aisles and reading labels, and quickly realized that they’re few and far between.

Even though I’m not totally against using hair products that contain silicone, I find that with products where they appear way up high in the list of ingredients, they tend to weigh down my hair and eventually lead to even worse frizz down the road. Plus, I like to keep my hair guessing by switching up my routine.

I found Living Proof’s Straight Spray ($29 for a 5.5-oz. bottle) last weekend at Sephora (it’s exclusive to the store). It’s a lightweight aerosol styling spray designed to straighten and protect hair from damage without the use of silicones, oils or resins. Instead, it relies on a molecule called PolyfluoroEster, which Living Proof claims prevents water from finding its way into the hair shaft and messing with your straightened ‘do.

It’s supposed to work on wet or dry hair, but the directions recommend applying to hair that’s clean and wet. Just mist hair evenly for 5-10 seconds holding the bottle 6 inches away. Then comb through and style with a blow dryer or flat iron.

I try to keep heat on my hair to a minimum, so what I like to do is shower at night, and then let my hair dry while I sleep. In the morning, I’ll spray it with Straight Spray, then use my Sedu flat iron to smooth out the waves.


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